Sassa payments fall short for elderly South Africans amid rising living costs
The South African Social Security Agency’s (Sassa) old age grant of R2,335 per pensioner is insufficient for many elderly individuals, like 78-year-old Nancy, who face rising living costs due to medical expenses and care needs, despite additional income sources. Picture: Google Gemini
Image: Google Gemini
While the old age (75+) grant of R2,335 per pensioner provided by the South African Social Security Agency (Sassa) every month is commendable, the reality is that it doesn’t go very far.
Considering most people over the age of 75 in South Africa require specialised medical care, the cost of surviving is becoming more difficult each year.
This comes as it emerged the Gauteng Department of Social Development (GDSD) underspent in the region of R100m during the 2024/2025 financial year.
The GDSD said its R102.9 million allocated remained unspent for that period.
Challenges of Managing Expenses for Elderly Couples in South Africa
For 78-year-old Nancy (not her real name she wishes to remain anonymous), the Sassa payout certainly helps a great deal but doesn’t come close to covering her monthly expenses.
Nancy lives with her 82-year-old bedridden husband and his carer in a retirement estate in Randburg.
“Well, in our situation, because my husband is bedridden, it doesn’t pay for an awful lot, but you know every little bit helps. It does cover some of his needs, which are daily diapers, which are very expensive,” she told IOL.
“I’ve discovered that there is a really cheap brand that is pretty good, and that’s a Clicks brand where I can actually get 10 for R120, but he uses two or three a day. So they don’t last too long.
“The medications that he has to have are also very expensive.”
The live-in carer also costs R7,000 for five days per week, and providing three square meals for three members of the household also quickly adds up.
In fact, Nancy says her food expenses per week are around R3,000. Nancy, though, unlike the majority of old age pensioners in South Africa, has other sources of income from a retirement annuity and assistance from her three children, which helps with her expenses.
“The Sassa grant is not the only income that I have to depend on, luckily. Otherwise, it wouldn’t go very far at all. “The cost of living has gone up unbelievably. So if that was all we had, it would be gone in no time.”